Phobias
by SpookyClaire
Summary: A series of stories in which the glee kids discover Kurt's different fears. MiKurt! Rating just to be safe.
1. Chapter 1: Aquaphobia

**Phobias**

**Summary: **A series of stories in which the glee kids discover Kurt's different fears. MiKurt!

**Chapter 1: **Aquaphobia

00

The warm weather had just started when Rachel suggested that everyone go over to her house for a pool party. Since they had been working so hard for Regionals it had seemed like an excellent idea to everyone. No one noticed that Kurt did not cry out with joy at the idea, or that he paled a bit at the mention of her pool. But when Rachel directly asked him if he would attend he forced a smile and nodded. _"Sure, sounds like fun!"_

It wasn't until the day of the actual party that anyone actually noticed his hesitance.

They were all standing in the fenced in pool area in Rachel's large back yard. The area was complete with lawn chairs and a table with an umbrella to keep some shade. The others praised Rachel's back yard excitedly, claiming they had no idea her family was 'so loaded'. They were all pulling off the clothes they had been wearing over their bathing suits, but Kurt was tugging uncomfortably on his white shirt, wearing his designer swim trunks on the bottom.

"You comin', boy?" Mercedes had asked as the boys all started to almost-violently jump into the deep end.

Kurt laughed a little, "Uh, in a minute, 'Cede. I want to wait for them to calm down." She seemed to accept that as she got into the shallow end with Tina, who was leaning on the edge talking to Artie, who was sitting in his chair on the side of the pool. Kurt decided to settle on one of the chairs and watch his friends for a bit. No one would question him if he claimed he was simply 'tanning.'

Then he watched as Rachel noticed Artie sitting a bit awkwardly in his chair. He watched as she got out of the pool and ran to grab a metal chair from the table set. "Finn, Puck, help me for a second." She ordered, and wordlessly they did. Artie watched Rachel in confusion as she lowered the chair into the shallow end. When she noticed him staring she blushed a little, "Uh, I thought maybe you'd want to try sitting in the shallow end?" She said awkwardly.

Artie looked honestly touched at how considerate she was being. "Really? Isn't that gonna ruin your chair?"

"Psh, these? They've been around longer than Sue Sylvester. They'll be fine." They all chuckled as Puck and Finn lifted Artie. They walked him down the steps in the shallow end and lowered him into the chair. It was perfect, his shoulders and head were still above the water, but he could still feel like he was participating in the fun.

Kurt was kind of jealous. It was weird.

"Thank you, Rachel." He said sincerely and the girl just smiled, before elegantly diving back into the pool.

"Sweet now everyone is-wait, Kurt! Get your butt in here!" It was Finn who spoke. Kurt jumped a bit, before going and sitting on the edge at the middle of the pool. He put his feet in the water. The others decided to accept it for a moment and started to play a weird version of water-tag that they made up on the spot. Kurt glanced to his left, towards the shallow end where Tina was wading next to Artie, who was watching with a smile.

"Hey, Artie!" Finn yelled, following Kurt's gaze. "Wanna piggy back ride to the deep end?" The others began to laugh and cheered on the idea.

A big grin spread across the crippled boy's face as he nodded. Finn swam over to him and knelt down in the water so Artie could wrap his arms around Finn's shoulders. Then without warning Finn rocketed off towards the deep end, everyone laughing at the sight as Artie cheered.

Kurt smiled, absolutely loving this. Absolutely loving _having friends_.

But then it happened. Someone noticed (an hour into the party) that Kurt still had yet to get in the water. "Kurt!" It was Santana, "Why aren't you soaked like the rest of us?" Everyone turned their attention to the boy sitting on the edge.

"Because I haven't gotten in yet." Kurt said matter-of-factly. He watched as Santana passed a glance at Brittany and they started to advance towards him. Panic filled him and he jumped up out of their reach just as they reached the edge.

Everyone groaned at that, "Kurt, come on! The water feels great!" It was Artie who spoke that, slapping Finn on the shoulder as he said it. Kurt, not knowing what to say, wordlessly shook his head.

"What, are you afraid of water or something?" Puck joked, and Kurt's cheeks flared. "Oh my God, you actually are?" Kurt waited for the laughter to start, but it never did. His friends got weird looks on their faces.

"Kurt, why didn't you tell me? We could have done something else!" Rachel said, looking displeased.

He just shrugged, "You all got excited at the idea of a pool party. I didn't want to ruin your fun."

"Why are you afraid of water?" Brittany asked, honestly confused, as she always was. "It doesn't hurt."

"Bad experiences." He said, shuddering a bit.

Mercedes got a worried look on her face, "You never told me that." She swam towards the edge and pulled herself out, sitting on it. He cautiously joined her. "What happened?"

Kurt didn't want to tell the story, but as he scanned the concerned faces of his 11 friends he felt slightly at ease. They honestly wanted to know what happened to him, and not just for gossip purposes.

He bit his lip for a second, before starting. "Well…uh, I haven't been swimming in 10 years. Not since my cousins almost drowned me." Everyone's eyes widened, horrified. There were several cries of 'what?' and a more vulgar version from Puck. "Well…I think they were just trying to be funny or something. You know, 10 year olds picking on a 6 year old and all that? I mean, they apologized a million times, but my dad has never let me alone with them since." No one seemed to be accepting that as the end of the story, so with a sigh he continued. "Well…my grandpa has a cabin on a lake in Vermont. I was sitting on the dock when they came up behind me. They surprised me, grabbed me and pushed me forward into the water. Then they just sorta…held my head under." There was a collective gasp of horror, "I don't remember much, just that one second I was under water and then the next I was lying on the dock with my dad standing over me, looking terrified…apparently I had stopped breathing." No one spoke they all simply looked horrified. Kurt laughed awkwardly, "That's why I didn't want to say anything. Sort of put a damper on the mood." Some of them offered soft smiles in response.

Finn spoke first, "So you haven't been swimming since?" Kurt shook his head, "Is that why your dad looked so weird when you told him where we were going? And why he said to take care of you?"

Kurt's blushed harder at that, "He said that?"

"Would you expect anything less from your father?"

Kurt sighed, "I guess not…" He kicked his foot in the water, "I'm sorry guys. I just totally ruined your fun."

"Not at all!" Rachel cried, trying to bring the good mood back.

"Yea, Kurt, you didn't ruin anything. As long as we're all together, it's fun." Tina smiled, passing glances at her friends as they all nodded. Kurt smiled appreciatively as they all started to chat and joke again. He nudged Mercedes, wordlessly telling her to get back in the book. Giving him a worried look and a warm smile, she slipped back in, but stayed close by.

After a moment of hesitation, Mike swam up to the edge of the pool. "Hey, Kurt, you, uh, want to go to the shallow end with me?" Kurt got a surprised look on his face. "I've been swimming all my life, I just thought…I mean, you don't have to." He said quickly.

But Kurt smiled, "Sure. But if I freak out, don't judge me." Standing, Kurt slowly walked towards the shallow end. When he reached the steps he paused, Mike made his way over and stood. After another moment of hesitation Mike held out his hand. Kurt took it appreciatively and slowly stepped into the water. Once completely in, the water came up to his chest. Kurt was squeezing Mike's hand so tight he wondered if he might break the boy's hand.

"See, not so bad, right?" Mike smiled and Kurt couldn't help but smile back.

"Yea, Kurt!" Matt yelled suddenly, with so much fervor it was as if he were at a football game. The others in the pool jumped in surprise and turned to see Kurt standing in the water. They too yelled their support and Kurt couldn't help but laugh.

"I didn't realize this was such a big deal." Kurt said awkwardly, his hands shaking, and Mike smiled back at the younger boy.

"Want to do deeper?" Kurt didn't speak. Eager to please his friends he nodded, as if afraid he wasn't able to speak an affirmative. Still holding his hand, Mike slowly stepped closer and closer to the deep end with Kurt slowly trailing beside him. Once the water got past Kurt's shoulder, at about the middle of the pool Kurt pulled Mike's hand back. The Asian boy looked at the short boy.

Kurt was shaking his head, "No, no further." Mike just smiled and stepped back beside him. They stood there for a minute, Kurt with his eyes closed tight while Mike watched him with interest.

"Do you want to ride me?" Mike asked suddenly, causing Kurt's eyes to bug out in surprise, "I mean my back!" He quickly squawked, "Like how Finn's giving Artie a ride." Kurt didn't think it was possible to blush as hard as Mike was blushing. He was sure he wasn't looking much better.

"I…I don't know…as long as we don't go under."

Mike nodded, "No problem! I'll keep you safe, don't worry." He smiled and turned around so Kurt could hop on his back. There was a pause, hesitation on Kurt's part, before he slowly wrapped his arms around Mike's shoulders. Once Kurt was secure, Mike started slowly into the deeper end. The deeper they got, the tighter Kurt held onto the Asian boy. By the time Mike's feet could no longer touch the bottom Kurt had wrapped his legs around Mike as well out of fear. Kurt had his eyes squeezed shut.

"Havin' fun, Kurt?" Kurt jumped at Mercedes' voice nearby. When he opened his eyes he saw all his friends staring back at him with bright smiles.

"Welcome to the world of the wet." Puck said, waggling his eyebrows, to which Santana snorted and some of the others just rolled their eyes.

Kurt smiled back, but when someone splashed and his hold tightened to a strangling grip on Mike's neck. "Kurt, you're kind of cutting off my air supply. And if I pass out you fall in." Kurt immediately loosened his grip, before tightening it again. Mike just smiled.

"It's nice having them do the work for you, isn't it?" Artie joked, to which Finn smirked and dunked both himself and Artie under before jumping back above the surface. Artie sputtered, "Asshole!" He cried, and the others burst out laughing. Kurt smiled but felt his stomach drop at the idea of doing that.

"Please don't do that to me." Kurt whispered to Mike, and the other boy just nodded.

"Don't worry, I won't." Mike turned to look at Kurt, whose chin was resting on his shoulder. "Is this too scary for you?" He asked as Kurt dug his nails into Mike's shoulder.

"No, no." Kurt said quickly, and then realized what he was doing. "Oh, sorry." He loosened his hands.

"It's all right. I just didn't want you to feel left out…"

Kurt smiled sappily, "Thank you, Mike."

"No problem, Kurt." Mike smiled just as sweetly.

"Aw, why don't you just kiss already?" Matt cried suddenly, surprising everyone (not only with the statement, but also with how (abruptly) talkative he was being today).

"Yea!" Several of the others cried at once. Mike and Kurt blushed deeply, Kurt hiding his face in Mike's shoulder as the Asian boy suddenly found the water extremely interesting.

"Aw, they're blushing!" Tina cried, "How _cute_!"

Mike sent a wave of a splash in her direction, the movement causing Kurt to squeak in surprise – and no one splashed back, not wanting Kurt to feel scared. And that was when Mike realized Kurt was the perfect shield and he began to splash everyone.

"As soon as he lets go I'm gonna kill you!" Puck cried after a rather large splash.

"Kurt, don't let go!" Mike laughed and Kurt couldn't help but laugh back.

"Get Mercedes next," He said quietly, and he didn't miss the shudder that went down Mike's spine when Kurt whispered in his ear. But Mike still did as told.

"Hey!" Mercedes sputtered, "Don't think I don't know that was your doing, white boy!" Mercedes cried.

The rest of the party continued in a similar fashion. Everyone enjoyed themselves, happy that _everyone_ could get in on the fun – even the paralyzed boy and the aquaphobe.

When they finally started to get a bit cold as the sun went behind the clouds, they all decided to get out. Mike and Finn swam over to the shallow end to let their passengers off. With the help of the football players, Artie was lifted back into his chair as Kurt scurried out of the pool. The girls followed suit and everyone wrapped themselves in their respective towels before gathering up their clothes and heading back for the house.

After getting cleaned up and changed they gathered in the living room around several pizza boxes as Rachel popped in _The Sound of Music_. After an hour of laughing and joking around Kurt got up to get a drink from the kitchen, everyone else so invested in Quinn and Artie's arm wrestling match that they didn't even notice.

When Kurt walked into the kitchen he jumped as there was a loud bang and cries of excitement from the living room. He shook his head and went to get a diet Pepsi out of the fridge. Turning around he jumped again to find Mike standing in the doorway. "Haha, you scared me." Mike just gave a soft smile, "So, who won?" He gestured towards the living room.

"Neither, Puck knocked a lamp over and distracted them." Kurt laughed and shook his head. The two stood silently for a moment before they both started to speak at the same time.

"You know, I-"

"Mike, you-"

They both laughed a bit awkwardly. "You first," Kurt encouraged.

"No, you." Mike said with a wave of his hand.

Kurt bit his lip before speaking again, "Mike, I…you know, I just wanted to thank you. For before, in the pool. I had so much fun and I never would have been able to if you hadn't gotten me to get in."

Mike just shrugged, "I didn't do much. I just asked if you wanted to get in…"

"Yea, but everyone else was too worried I would freak out to ask. I'm glad you did."

Mike smiled, and shrugged, clearly embarrassed. "Yea…well…yea, no problem."

Kurt watched Mike, "What were you gonna say?"

"Oh, nothing. Nothing really important…"

"No, really." Kurt encouraged, "What was it?"

"I was…I was just gonna say…" Mike glanced up at Kurt timidly, " I just was gonna say that I had fun today. I'm glad we got to have so much fun together." Kurt smiled warmly in response. "And…you know…what Matt and the others were saying…"

Kurt raised an eyebrow, "About how we were 'cute'?" He asked.

Mike nodded, "Yea I…I just was wondering…what did you…think of that?"

Kurt looked slightly surprised, before smiling warmly at Mike. "You're not much of a talker, are you?" He asked playfully. Mike laughed a little awkwardly before glancing down at his feet. "And to answer your question, I…I'm not sure what I think of that. I mean…I…I had _a lot_ of fun with you. And I just sort of had an epiphany…that I…I really want to get to know you better."

Mike's glanced up, eyes alight."And I, ya' know, I mean, I'd like to…you know, cautiously, give this…us a try. I mean, if that's what you mean." He added the last part quickly.

"Really?"

Kurt smiled, "Yea."

Mike beamed excitedly and stepped forward, holding out his hand for Kurt. With a smile still on his face he took it. "I'm glad this happened today, Kurt." Mike smiled.

"Yea," Kurt grinned, "Me too. Who knew I'd ever be grateful to my cousins for almost killing me?" Mike shuddered at the idea, "Don't worry, Mike. I'm not scared of swimming anymore. As long as I have you to ride." Kurt's eyes twinkled and Mike laughed.

"Come on." He said, tugging on Kurt's hand. "Let's get back to the others and see if anyone won that arm wrestling match yet."

0END0

_So, what did you think of the first of 'Phobias'? Hope you enjoyed it!_

_Thanks for reading!_

_-claire_


	2. Chapter 2: Nyctophobia

**Phobias**

**Chapter 2**: Nyctophobia

**Looking for suggestions** on what phobias to do. I've gotten a couple good ones from Sushi Chi (speaking of which, I'm gonna go all fangirl and say that I love SC's stories and you need to check them out!) so that got the juices flowin', but I'm still open to suggestions. If you have any ideas please tell me!

Enjoy!

00

Kurt didn't like the dark.

He never had. He'd always been afraid of the dark, always had a nightlight. It got particularly worse after his mother died. She couldn't come and comfort him when he got scared and that somehow made what was lurking in the shadows more sinister. It didn't help that he had particularly bad experiences with being locked in dark closets…

But this was probably the worst it had ever been. He had run to his car to get something, a mix tape so the New Directions crew could rock out in celebration of getting another year. But as he made his way over a familiar face stepped in front of him, right in his path to his car.

"Andrew." Kurt breathed, feeling surprised and a bit panicked. "What are you doing here?" He hadn't seen Andrew since…well, technically, since Regional's since he was in Vocal Adrenaline. But before that…it had to be eight years. And the last time hadn't exactly been a fun time.

"I just came to pay you a visit, Kurt." And before he could blink, Kurt found himself surrounded by Vocal Adrenaline kids.

"Why can't you leave us alone? You won, fair and square. We haven't done anything in retaliation."

"No, no…this isn't in response to anything your group has done. Just something _you've_ done."

Kurt froze, "Me? Wha—what did I do?"

"You know what you did," Andrew took a step forward so that he was inches from Kurt's face, leaning in he whispered in Kurt's ear, "_Faggot._"

And that's when the punches flew.

00

Mercedes let out a huff of annoyance, "What is taking that boy so long? The parking lot is like two feet away." The other Glee club members just shrugged and continued on in their conversations.

"I'll go see what's wrong." Quinn said, standing. It could be the new-found maternal instincts of hers, but something felt off.

"I'll go with you." Mike said, standing as well, clearly worried about his boyfriend. As the two made eye contact it was clear that they shared their worried feelings. They made their way out the door and down the hall. They walked out the door and heard the sound of the door of the outdoor freezer slamming shut, but they ignored that, assuming it was one of the lunch ladies. They walked into the parking lot to find…

Nobody.

It was completely empty. They started to make their way to Kurt's car, wondering why he wasn't walking towards them saying _'Sorry, lost my keys for a minute!'_ The two shared another look before wandering around the lot for a minute. Then they heard the sound of several cars starting. They made their way around the building just in time to see five Range Rovers speeding away.

_Vocal Adrenaline_.

"What the hell were they doing here?" Mike demanded, Quinn just shrugged.

Then they heard it.

Muffled screams. _Kurt's_ muffled screams.

"Is that coming from the-?"

"Oh _hell_ no!"

The two broke into a run toward the outdoor freezer and with every step the screams got louder. They got to the freezer to find the pad lock in place. Mike tugged hard on the door but it wouldn't budge. There were only loud banging sounds in response.

"Kurt! Kurt, are you all right?"

The banging stopped. "Q-Quinn?"

"And Mike." The Asian boy chimed in, pulling hard on the door again.

"That's no good, we need to get the lock off." Quinn said quietly, before addressing Kurt again. "Kurt, are you ok?"

"…b-been better." He hiccupped.

"Are you crying?" Mike asked, feeling panicked. "Are you hurt? What did those pricks do to you?"

There was an odd sound, like Kurt had tried and failed to swallow a sob, "Can you j-ust get me out of here, pl-ease?" His breath hitched every few seconds, like someone who'd been crying too hard.

"No problem, Kurt. Hang on. We're gonna get you out." Quinn turned to Mike, "I'll call the others and tell them to get something to get the door open…we can't leave him alone." Mike nodded and she took a step back, pulling out her phone. Then Mike went back to talking to Kurt, trying to keep him calm, because from the sounds of it he was starting to hyperventilate.

"Kurt, you need to stay calm, ok? We'll have you out in a few minutes."

"Hurry, please." He hiccupped. "It's really dark." He barely heard him say it, but when he registered what his boyfriend had said his heart broke. But before he could say anything more to Kurt, Quinn was back at his side.

"They'll be out in two seconds."

"Hear that, Kurt? They'll be out in just a minute and we'll unlock the door, ok?" They didn't get a response. "Kurt?" That time there was a loud sob in reply.

"It's ok, Kurt. Just stay calm, ok?" Mike leaned over to Quinn as she spoke and whispered that he was pretty sure Kurt was scared of the dark. "Kurt, just close your eyes. It won't seem so dark that way." Kurt didn't respond, but then the two friends heard the sound of the door they'd come out of no more than five minutes ago slam open.

Quinn ran past the corner of the building so the others could see them. She saw the whole group, including Mr. Shuester, running towards them like bats out of hell. She noticed Puck held a pair of bolt cutters in his hand.

"Where'd you get those?" She asked as they reached her.

"Stole 'em from the janitor's closet." They all ran towards the freezer, where Mike was still talking soothingly to Kurt.

"They're here, Kurt! We'll have you out in five seconds." The Asian called through the door as Puck stomped up and placed the lock in between the blades of the cutters. With a hard push on the handle he cut through the lock. He quickly pulled it off and Kurt came falling out of the freezer, shaking and covered in bruises.

"Kurt!" They all cried at once. He collapsed into Mike and Puck's arms as Quinn quickly pushed the door shut. They quickly led him to the closest bench and sat him down as Finn and Matt pulled off their sweatshirts and wrapped them around the shaking boy.

"Who did this?" Their teacher demanded, taking a step forward and taking in Kurt's injuries. Pretty much the whole left side of his face was bruised and starting to swell. He was holding himself oddly, telling Will his midsection was hurting him, and he was clutching his left arm to himself.

"V-v-vocal adrenal-line." He stuttered out, still freezing and panicked. Mike ran his hands up and down Kurt's arms quickly, trying to generate heat.

"What? Why?" Will looked completely confused, "We didn't do anything…" He paused and looked at Finn and Puck, "Did we?"

"No, we swear Mr. Shue!" They said at once.

Will said nothing, but carefully pulled Kurt's left hand from where he was clutching it to himself. The boy let out a quiet whimper as it was touched and they all gasped at the sight. His fingers, minus his thumb, were completely swollen and discolored. His pointer finger was actually bent in a direction it should _not_ be bent in.

"They s-slammed the d-door o-on my h-hand when they w-were locking me i-in." He said, tears he was fighting back still in his eyes.

"Oh, Kurt…" Mercedes whispered, kneeling down beside her friend with a sad look on her face.

He lowered his head, obviously embarrassed. "It was r-really d-dark in there," He whispered, "And-drew kn-knew that." Kurt sobbed a bit and Mike wrapped an arm around his shoulder.

"Andrew?"

"My cousi-in."

"You have a cousin on Vocal Adrenaline?" Kurt merely nodded at his teacher's question.

"Why didn't you tell us that?" Rachel asked, not accusing but rather questioning.

"Because I d-didn't know until r-right before Regional's. I h-haven't seen him in e-eight ye-years." His breathing continued to hitch due to the crying he was now suppressing.

"This isn't the same cousin who-?" Matt started, but Kurt cut him off.

"N-no, no. T-they like me-e."

"Why'd they do this?" Mike asked quietly, rubbing slow circles on Kurt's back, trying to calm him down.

"B-because I'm gay."

"How is that news to anybody?" Puck asked, only to be elbowed by both Quinn and Tina.

"It's not n-news. His f-family just h-ates me." He swallowed hard, mostly calm now.

"What? Because you're gay? Way to be original." Santana said, rolling her eyes, and Kurt couldn't help but smile at her.

"This is unacceptable." Will huffed, looking enraged. "You guys drive to the hospital to get him checked out. I'm going to call the police."

Kurt's eyes widened in horror, "The police? Why?"

"Are you serious?"

"Kurt, you were _attacked_."

"But then Andrew - _my __cousin_ - will get arrested!"

"Asshole deserves it, man."

Kurt bit his lip, "I don't doubt that. I just…ugh." He shook his head, and everyone waited for another heartbreaking confession to come from the boy's lips. "We are _never_ going to get another Christmas card from them again." His friends, surprised by the statement, burst out laughing.

00

Kurt was filling out some paper work with his (thankfully) unbroken right hand when his dad arrived. He came flying through the doors of the ER, right past the glee kids, Mr. Shue and a police officer. Carole came in behind him, a soft, worried smile on her face as she walked over to the waiting kids. Burt made a beeline for his son and immediately began to look him up and down, gently man-handling him the way only Burt Hummel could.

"What did those animals do to you?" He growled, gingerly touching Kurt's bruised and swollen cheek. Then he caught sight of Kurt's taped and splinted fingers. "Those _fuckers!_" He all but screamed.

"Dad," Kurt started just as the police officer came up beside the father and son.

"Mr. Hummel?"

"What?" Burt snarled but calmed down when he noticed it was a cop. "Oh, sorry."

The officer just nodded, "We have an Andrew Faust in custody, as well as several other teenagers, for the assault on your son. I understand your son has a history with Mr. Faust?"

A deadly sneer came across Burt's face at the name. He turned to his son, "_He_ did this to you?" Kurt just shrugged and looked away. Burt looked back at the officer. "Yea, we have a history with that little shit."

The officer seemed slightly amused by Burt's words, but he kept a straight face. "Kurt has told us he does not want to press charges, but as his legal guardian I have to ask-"

"What? Of _course_ we're going to press charges!" Burt cried, making everyone in the vicinity jump.

"Dad…" Kurt started to say, unconsciously reaching for his dad with his left hand. The sight of his son's broken fingers only infuriated him more.

"No! Don't you _dare_, Kurt. You managed to talk me out of it last time, but not this time. That fucker is eighteen now and there is no way I'm passing up a chance to mar his records for good. Not after all he's done to you." Burt said venomously. Kurt just looked down.

The officer nodded, "Well I have gotten all the statements and information I need at the moment. I will be contacting you tomorrow for any additional information I'll need to file the charges." He pulled out a card and handed it to Kurt, "Call me if you think of anything else." He nodded to Burt, "Have a good night, sir." And with a nod to the Glee kids, the officer left.

Burt looked Kurt over once more before throwing his arms around his son and holding him tight. "Oh, God, Kurt…" He whispered, his eyes welling up a bit.

"It's ok, dad." Kurt said just as quietly.

"No, it's not." Burt whispered before stepping back. Kurt placed a hand on his ribs and Burt's eyes widened. "Exactly how badly did they hurt you?" He was clearly trying to stay calm, but he was failing miserably. Kurt just shrugged in response. Burt spun around to face the receptionist, "I want to talk to my son's doctor. _Now_."

With a sigh Kurt turned back to his friends and gave a half smile, "Anyone want to come back to my place?"

00

All the glee kids were gathered in Kurt and Finn's bedroom. Munching on pizza, they were not nearly as rowdy as they usually were. Burt, Carole and Mr. Shue were all up in the kitchen, quietly chatting over coffee. Mike and Kurt sat with their backs up against Kurt's bed, the others sat in a circle with them.

"So…Kurt." Everyone looked up as Puck spoke, "Are all your cousins murderous assholes, or just the three we've heard about?" Santana humorously snorted and Rachel reached over and smacked Puck on the back of the head. "Ow! What? We were all thinking it!"

Kurt chuckled a bit, "No. No, Tyler and Mitchell, the ones I told you about before, they love me. What happened with them was a total accident. A bit of teasing gone bad." Several of the glee kids rolled their eyes at that, but Kurt came to his cousins' defense once again. "No, really. That was about a decade ago. We've long since reconciled, they have never beat on me since. I never blamed them anyway, they felt so awful afterward. It took them a bit longer to get my dad's forgiveness, though. Since their mom is my dad's sister that was a _really_ awkward Christmas." All the kids chuckled after that.

"So, what's up with Andrew then? Your dad didn't seem too fond of him." It was Artie who asked that time.

"Andrew, well…he…he never liked me. Or should I say, his parents never liked me and Andrew inherited that hate from them." Kurt bit his lip, "His mom was my mom's sister. From the beginning I could tell that Aunt Joanne never really liked me. She scared me when I was a kid. She was mean and overly religious. So naturally, you can guess why she always hated me." A few of the kids smirked or shook their heads at that.

"When we were kids and my dad's siblings couldn't watch me, I would go over there to be babysat. When I was there, Andrew would lock me in the closet for an hour or so…he liked to make me cry. But I always had the light in there so I was never too scared, just angry and a bit claustrophobic. But when…when my mom died…" Kurt paused, still hurting from the loss of his mother after eight years. Mike wrapped his arm around Kurt. "When she died, my dad needed to get things straightened out when it came to my mom's financial records and will and stuff, and he needed to go to Sandusky to do it so he asked them to watch me for the night. When I got there my aunt…" Kurt paused and glanced up at his friend with tears in his eye. "Ha, sorry." Mike placed his hand lightly on the base of Kurt's neck and Mercedes took her best friend's right hand. "That night my aunt told me…she said my mom had died because God was angry with me for being gay." Kurt shook his head, "I didn't even know what that meant at the time."

The eleven kids in the room let out loud gasps and roars of outrage, "What the _fuck_?" Finn cried, clearly he'd never heard this story.

"And since I was eight at the time, I believed her." He looked down at his hands,_ sometimes I think I still do_, the sentiment hung in the air.

"Kurt." Mike said almost beggingly as the other glee kids made protests in a similar tone. Kurt just shook his head, and Mike tightened his hold on him, pulling him closer.

There was a long pause, and then Matt quietly asked, "What did Andrew do after that?"

Kurt shook his head, "Right, right. After my Aunt said that to me I was a crying mess. Andrew had heard what she'd said so he took me and threw me in the closet, my aunt watched the whole thing and didn't say anything…I was crying and begging him not to lock me in and he said to me, he just said, 'you know what you did, faggot.' That was the first time anyone ever called me that…" Kurt paused, and shook his head, "Then he slammed the door and locked me in…and he'd taken the light bulb out, too. Then he left me there. He just left me, and my aunt and uncle let him. I was locked in the closet for almost twenty four hours, in the pitch black. I had never liked the dark to begin with…"

The kids looked horrified, "They didn't let you out?" Brittany whispered, sounding terrified, as if she were listening to a ghost story.

Kurt shook his head, "It wasn't until my dad came to get me that I got out. He came in and opened the closet and…I was a mess. A sobbing, snotty mess. I've never been so scared in my life…I really thought I was going to die in there. And…and ever since then I've been petrified of the dark…Finn knows." He said, smiling, though it didn't meet his eyes. "I make him sleep with a nightlight."

"I don't mind, Kurt." Finn whispered, not sure of what else to say.

There was another long pause, before Brittany finally broke it. "I sleep with a nightlight too. Mine's a duck, what does yours look like?" She suddenly sounded very excited at the prospect of seeing someone else's nightlight.

Whether she knew it or not, that was exactly what Kurt needed, and he broke out into a smile. "Mine's a high-heel shoe. It's over there." He pointed to the outlet on the wall opposite of Kurt's bed. She turned and scurried over to examine it, Santana following with a soft smile on her face.

Kurt shook his head, "You know, guys, I feel like every time we get together I just end up depressing you."

They all chuckled at their friend. "You know we don't mind, Kurt. We just want you to be happy…your cousins just make it hard" Tina said, half grinning.

Kurt smiled warmly at the goth and looked at all of his friends. "Thanks guys." He said, a bit embarrassed.

"Hey, kids!" Came a call from the top of the stairs. They all turned to see Burt standing there, with Carole and Will standing behind him. "Are you spending the night?"

Kurt turned to his friends with a raised eyebrow, and they all shrugged or nodded. "If you don't mind, dad." Kurt said, smiling sweetly up at his father.

Whether it was the smile, the bruises or just _Kurt_, Burt seemed to melt at his son's smile, Carole and Will laughed at the father's expense. "No problem, son. Just don't stay up too late."

Kurt turned back to his friends and smiled, "Well…looks like it's a party!"

The twelve friends brightened the mood after that, all joking and laughing, playing games like 'truth or dare' and 'spin the bottle.' Around midnight they all decided to start getting ready for bed, but they all ended up talking from their sleeping spots for a few more hours.

As three AM rolled around they were all fast asleep, Kurt's stiletto nightlight shining bright on the wall.

00

_What did you think of this one, was it any good?_

_Thanks for reading!_

_-claire_


	3. Chapter 3: Acrophobia

**Phobias**

**Chapter 3**: Acrophobia

**Note**: Shout out to anyone who loves Cedar Point? 'Cause I'm kind of a ridiculous rollercoaster junkie.

**PS**: I'm watching the DVD extras as I watch this XD Yay for the Glee Season 1 DVDs!

00

There was no way.

"Dude! Look at that thing!"

No way in _hell_.

"Man, I'm shitting my pants just looking at it!"

Nope. Never gonna happen.

"Let's go, the line isn't that bad!"

Mike tugged on Kurt's hand; all the boys (plus Santana and Brittany) were standing outside the

'Top Thrill Dragster'. A record breaking roller coaster, not just for its height and its speed, but for the fact it went at a _ninety degree angle_. Not to mention it had a fucking _jet engine_ on it.

The gleeks had all made the two hour drive to Cedar Point, 'The Rollercoaster Capital of the World,' for a weekend of fun. Now, Kurt wasn't much of a rollercoaster rider, but neither were Rachel, Mercedes, Artie (not really of his own free will), and Tina (surprisingly). So he assumed he would be OK. But when those four decided they'd spend the morning in the water park next door, Kurt was kind of stuck. He didn't want to ruin their fun, and it wasn't like the only choice of things to do in the park were those really, really high rides. But when he got to the park with the boys and the two cheerios he kind of regretted his decision.

They ran right for that record breaking ride, and it was then that Kurt decided would be the best time to tell his boyfriend of his fear, or at least get out of riding the ride. "You know what, I don't think I want to ride this one."

Mike stopped, turning to his boyfriend, "What? Why?"

"It's a little intense, Mike." Kurt said, almost admonishingly.

Mike bit his lip, the three other boys and Brittany stopping their run towards the line entrance. Clearly he didn't want Kurt to have to wait alone.

"I'll wait with him." Santana said, with a bit of forced reluctance, Kurt noticed.

"You sure?" Mike asked, still looking worried about Kurt and bad that Santana was passing up the ride. _He's so considerate,_ Kurt thought with a smile.

"Santana, I don't need a babysitter."

"Shut it, frootloop." She said, before glancing at Brittany, who looked torn. "Its fine, Britt. Just sit with Matt." She still looked unhappy, "I'll go win you that duck you were eyeing while you ride it, ok?" The blond perked up at that. Dashing forward she hugged Santana then, grabbing Matt's hand, she ran forward towards the line, leading the boys with her.

Once they were out of sight, Kurt looked at Santana, who gave him a side-long glance. "C'mon, frootloop." She led him back the way they came, towards the 'guess you age, weight, height' booth.

"Is that my new name?" Kurt asked jokingly.

"Would you prefer something else?" She asked snappily, though Kurt just grinned.

"You know you can drop the bitch act with me, Santana. I mean, you've seen me at my worst, I think we're sort of friends now, whether you like it or not."

Santana actually paused in her walking at that, glancing at Kurt. He stopped too, raising an eyebrow. With a nod she started again. "I can deal with that…frootloop." This time the bitchy-ness was gone, and there was a glint in her eye.

"So…" Kurt started, "You afraid of heights too?" Santana looked surprised, "Why else wouldn't you want to ride that ride?" Santana just shrugged. "Why'd you come with the boys if you didn't plan on riding the rides?"

"Why did _you_?" Despite her new decision that they were friends, Santana still had that edge to her. The only person she _didn't_ have it with, Kurt had noticed, was Brittany.

"Because it was either wait around for you guys to get off rides or wade in the water, terrified that I'm going to drown." Kurt shrugged, "Besides, some of those water slides are _high_. So it's lose-lose over there."

Santana seemed to consider this and nodded appreciatively, as if Kurt had just explained something really thoughtful. "Britt loves rollercoasters." She said after a moment.

Kurt looked at her, "Yea, the way she bolted for the ride I assumed." He laughed and Santana smiled.

"I didn't want to disappoint her. I actually road the Superman last year at Six Flags. I convinced her that the reason I was throwing up after was because of the smell of the fat guy riding in front of us and _not_ because I was terrified." Kurt snorted, and Santana stuffed her hands in her pockets, as if realizing what she had just admitted.

It was then that Kurt really looked her up and down. She wasn't in her normal clothing, the cheerio uniform and high ponytail. She had her hair in messy, braided pigtails, resting against her shoulders. She wore a pair of torn jeans, a purple tank-top and a black, sleeveless, hooded sweater. Maybe it was the way they were talking civilly, or maybe it was her clothes (or maybe it was both) but she seemed totally different than her normal, bitchy self. She was acting like a friend…Kurt liked that.

Noticing him staring, she glanced up, "What?"

"Nothing. You just look really pretty today."

The surprised look came back across her features, "Uh, thanks?"

With that signature smirk of his, Kurt linked arms with Santana and they continued their trek to the booth. "So…why _are_ you afraid of heights?"

Santana shrugged, looking away. "Shitty experiences."

"Sounds like something I've said more than once…" Kurt smiled a little and Santana gave a half smile.

She paused, looking like she was about to say something. Then finally, she did speak, "My…my brother jumped off the roof when I was three. Since then I've never really been one for high places."

"Oh…my…Santana, I-I didn't know." Kurt blushed, surprised by what the usually cold cheerio just admitted to. "How old was he?"

"Sixteen…our age…" She shook her head, looking down. "I never really knew him…but…it really messed my mom up, ya' know? Family's been fucked up ever since…" Kurt squeezed her hand, offering a weak smile, saying nothing. "I never told anyone that story…well, except Brittany. But then she just asked me is he was trying to fly."

The mood suddenly changed, and the two burst out laughing. "She always knows just what to say…even if she doesn't." Kurt smiled and Santana nodded.

"So…why are _you_ scared, frootloop?"

Kurt shrugged, "Nothing like what you've been through. I just…I've always been afraid. Why else do you think my room is in the basement?" Santana grinned, "I just…really like being on the ground, you know?"

"Yea, I know." Santana smiled.

They walked silently for the rest of the trek. Once they made their way to it, the bored looking teen standing there forced a smile on her face and asked, "Want to play the game?"

Pushing Kurt forward Santana ordered: "Guess his age. Say something." She elbowed Kurt.

"Um, hi?"

Upon hearing his voice the girl's eyes narrowed, "Uuh…thirteen?"

"Thirteen!" Kurt sputtered, looking horrified.

"Wrong!" Santana cheered, "Can we have the duck?"

"I'll have you know I'm seventeen!" Kurt cried, glaring at the teen as Santana took the giant stuffed duck off the rack.

"Bye!" The cheerio waved, grabbing Kurt's arm and trotting back towards the terrifying rollercoaster.

"Thirteen!" Kurt screeched again. Santana continued to cackle, fumbling with the giant stuffed animal in her arms.

"You should have used that really low voice." Santana laughed out.

"What? You mean…this?" Kurt spoke in a ridiculously low register, just as he had at the beginning of 'Give Up the Funk' (the number that the club had performed to freak out Vocal Adrenaline). Santana laughed even harder, "Does this make you laugh, Santana?" He asked in the low voice and the Latina cheerio had to stop walking and bend over she was laughing so hard. Kurt continued to sing out Santana's name in the low register and the poor girl couldn't even breathe she was laughing so hard. Several passers-by glanced at the two of them, looking confused before scurrying off.

"What are you guys doing?" The two looked up to see their friends walking up to them.

"You guys got on and off already?" Kurt asked sounding surprised as Santana caught her breath.

"Yea, the line was like, nonexistent." Puck shrugged.

"Duckie!" Brittany cried as she caught up. Santana handed her excited girlfriend the duck. "I'm gonna name you Floyd!" She told it ecstatically. Santana rolled her eyes, but grinned nonetheless.

"So what were you guys talking about?" Mike asked, taking Kurt's hand as they walked farther into the park.

"Oh…" Kurt glanced at Santana, who was holding Brittany's hand. She had an odd look on her face, she was clearly waiting for Kurt's response. "Nothing really." Santana glanced up from the ground, a soft smile on her face. The two of them had really shared something special, and Kurt wasn't about to take that for granted.

Mike nodded, squeezing Kurt's hand. "So…why don't we do the bumper cars next?" Kurt smiled warmly at his _very_ considerate boyfriend.

"Yea! Floyd and I will kick your butts!" Brittany cried, holding up her stuffed duck. Santana laughed and glanced at Kurt.

"I think I can handle that." She smiled and Kurt nodded.

"Yea, me too." The two shared one last smile before heading off to the not-scary ride.

00

_So, what did you think? A little short, but that's cause there's a little more sweet and a little less depression XD_

_Hope you liked it, thanks for reading!_

_-claire_


	4. Chapter 4: Autophobia

**Phobias**

**Chapter 4**: Autophobia

**Note**: Sorry this one took a bit longer, I've got a lot of stuff going on in my classes right now. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this one!

00

Kurt was in glee when he got the call.

He wouldn't have noticed had his phone not been on vibrate. While waiting for Mr. Shue, Rachel was belting out 'The Morning Report' from the _Lion King_ Musical (for unknown reasons) and he was happy for the distraction. He caught the call at the last second as he made his way to the corner.

He wished he hadn't.

"Hello?"

"Is this a Mr.…Kurt Hummel?"

_This better not be a telemarketer_… "Yes, what do you need?"

"Mr. Hummel, this is Lima Suburban Hospital. We have a…Burt Hummel here, you are listed as his contact. Are you of relation?" She sounded like she was bored, like this was just another day for her. But Kurt felt his world come to a crashing halt at those words.

"He's my father," He found himself whispering, "What happened?" The panicked teen hadn't noticed that Rachel had finished singing, or that all eyes were now on him in the silent room.

"Sir, your father was brought in…" She paused, clearly reading from a file, "He'd been found by a coworker. We're not really-"

"You're at Lima Suburban?" Kurt asked quickly, haphazardly throwing on his coat one arm at a time before grabbing his bag.

"Yes, sir."

"I'll be there in twenty minutes." And with that, Kurt snapped his phone shut and bolted for the door, ignoring the cries for him from his friends. He was so focused on what he had just heard that he slammed into Will as he came through the door.

"Kurt-?"

"I'm sorry, I-I have to go!"

And with that, he was out the door and out of sight.

00

_It looks like your father suffered a heart attack_.

The words kept playing in Kurt's head.

_We're not sure how severe yet, but we'll have his doctor talk to you as soon as possible_.

That had been an hour ago, and Kurt had never been a patient person. '_He's dead_,' Kurt thought. '_Why else would it take so long?_'

Currently, Kurt sat alone on a bench outside the emergency, not able to handle the bustling inside of the hospital. He sat with his knees drawn up to his chest, arms wrapped around himself, tears in his eyes as he bit his lip hard.

He pressed his chin into his knees. "Oh, dad." Kurt whimpered aloud, '_I can't do this without you_,' He thought, '_Why do you have to go? Why did you have to leave me? Just like…just like mom did_. _You both left me. Now…now I'm…_' "I'm alone." He whispered aloud, eyes widening.

_Alone_. Such a simple word, and yet it filled Kurt with such panic.

"I'm alone." He said again, "I _can't_ be alone."

Letting go of his legs, he let them fall to the ground with two dull thuds. He sat there, frozen for a minute, chest heaving as he kept thinking the same words over and over again, '_I'm alone_.'

Suddenly he began to slam his fists continuously into his knees, tears streaming down his face. '_No! No! No!_' And as suddenly as he began beating himself, he stopped, and shooting up, he began pacing. '_I can't be alone…no, no, no…_' How could he do this? He couldn't be alone. If he was alone…no, he couldn't even think about what happened. It was not a possibility, he couldn't do it.

He made his decision.

'_I'll go to the shop_,' He thought, '_I'll sit in that junker that's been in the back for months. Yea, that'll work. I'll just turn the engine on and…go to sleep. And then everything…everything will be ok._' He felt himself filling with an odd sense of relief. He wouldn't be alone now. He'd be with his parents.

With a determined nod he started towards the parking lot where he'd left his car close to two hours ago. As he started his trek a new voice intruded on his thoughts.

"Kurt!" He slowly tuned to see Finn running towards him.

With a strangely calm voice Kurt asked, "Come to give your condolences?"

Finn got a confused look on his face, "My what?" With a shake of his head Kurt turned and started towards for his car again. "Wait, dude, where are you going?"

"To the shop. I'm going to be with my dad."

Finn looked as confused as always, "But…your dad's not at the shop…?" Kurt decided not to respond, Finn obviously couldn't understand. He continued his walk but the other boy grabbed his arm. "No, wait man! My mom said the doctors called. Why didn't you tell me? Or, us? We've all been calling your phone nonstop, man!" Kurt had smashed his phone against the dashboard a couple times when he first got there. He wasn't too sure it worked anymore. "My mom talked to the doctor. He said-"

"Please, Finn. Don't give me the details."

"What?"

"I…I don't want to hear the gruesome details. I can't handle it." He pulled on his arm, "Now please, let me go. I can't be alone, I've got to get to the shop."

"What? Kurt—that doesn't make any—"

"Let me go, Finn!" Kurt screamed, and Finn jumped back, letting go of his almost-step-brother as if he were on fire. Finn was preventing Kurt from getting to see his father and mother again and that was making him lose his calm. "I need to go, ok? I can't be alone!" He began to stomp towards his car, leaving a worried Finn behind. A moment later the confused teen slowly began to follow.

"But—but he's been asking for you."

"Who?" Kurt snarled over his shoulder.

"Your dad, man."

Kurt stopped dead at that. "How would you know?" He asked with narrowed eyes, '_What, is Finn a psychic now?_'

"The nurses told me." Finn said as if that was the most obvious thing in the world.

Kurt tilted his head to the side, "Is one of them a medium?"

Finn narrowed his eyes, confused. "Uh…I don't know. The one I talked to looked more like a large to me."

Had this been any situation, any other situation at all, Kurt would have burst out laughing. But at the moment he just wanted to sob. Finn wasn't making any sense. "How would they know my dad was asking for me?"

"Well, obviously they talked to him. Man, what's wrong with you? I know it would freak me out if my dad had a heart attack, but we've been looking for you the past hour! Your dad was all kinds of freaked out, they were threatening to sedate him."

_Sedate? Sedate a dead man? That's not…_

"Finn…is my dad alive?"

The taller boy got a confused look on his face, "Um, yea dude. What? Did you think he wasn't?" Kurt felt his knees go weak, his eyes watering. "You thought he was dead?" Finn asked, eyes widening. Kurt let out a wet laugh, like he was half sobbing. "Oh my God, Kurt." Finn clearly had no idea how to react.

"Where is he?" Kurt whispered.

"He's in room 218-Kurt!" The gay teen hadn't waited to hear the rest of Finn's sentence, he just bolted for the hospital once again. He could hear Finn's heavy footsteps behind him but he didn't pay the other boy any mind. He just needed to see his dad, to make sure Finn was right. He ran past the waiting room, where all his friends sat – when had they got there? He didn't bother to stop and ask them. He ran up the stairwell, not wanting to wait for the elevator.

As he passed the different rooms he read their numbers out of the corner of his eye, when he finally reached room 218 he came to screeching halt and threw himself inside. There sat his dad, looking surprised by his son's entrance.

"Kurt!" He half laughed, half gasped. "Where were you? They said they couldn't find you-" The father didn't get to finish and Kurt threw himself at his father and wrapped his arms around his neck, tears falling from his eyes. "Son?"

"Oh God, dad…" Kurt gasped, "I was so sure you were…" Kurt couldn't even say it, "I thought I was alone." He whispered.

He felt his dad's rough hand slowly pet the top of his head, "It's ok, Kurt. I'm not going any where...I'll never leave you alone." Kurt let out a sob of relief and clung to his father, while the older man stroked his hair. "It's ok, Kurt…"

They sat like that for a long moment, until Kurt finally pulled back, looking up at his father. "Dad?"

"Yea, buddy?"

"I'm gonna do whatever it takes to make sure you never leave me…" Kurt looked his father right in the eye, "You're going to eat what I cook now, and you're gonna like it." Burt got a surprised look on his face before he began to laugh.

"Sure thing, buddy. Sure thing."

0END0

_Not sure how I feel about this one. I wanted to get another chapter up but I'm not sure if I like it…tell me what you think and I'll decide if I'm gonna keep it up on the site or not. _

_Thanks for reading!_

_-claire_


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